Falling
by xYaoiGirlx
Summary: [KaiRei shounenai] Kai lets his mask fall for once while the only person who wants to see the true Kai is sound asleep.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimers: I don't own Beyblade; I'm simply using the characters for my and my muse's entertainment.

Falling by Yaoi Girl

It had been there, hanging over their heads, threatening to spill any second, but the storm clouds had simply hovered there, hording its precious liquid. And Rei had never liked storms to begin with.

Takao and Kyouju had returned to Japan two days ago to stay for a month in order to spend time with their families before the team reunited for their next tournament, whereas Max had stayed in America to spend some time with his mother after being picked up by a BBA bus earlier that afternoon, since Judy was only a couple hours drive away with her team in a new training area.

As for Rei and Kai…well, with the storm looming outside, not to mention the almost unbearable humidity, all flights from Florida to anywhere were cancelled. The storm was said to be turning into a tropical storm and preparing to unleash it torrential downpour any second.

So with their flights cancelled, the airport set them up in a hotel for the night.

It wasn't the fanciest of rooms, but Rei wouldn't complain. Anything to keep his feet dry was fine with him. Kai, on the other hand, wasn't too thrilled with it, seeing as it housed only one bed and very little pacing room.

But the hotel was packed with other people that couldn't fly out, so nothing could really be done unless he paid for the pair's transportation to another hotel and then a room, not to mention transportation back to the airport the next afternoon, and that was if they were lucky and the storm only lasted overnight. But if the storm started and continued on, then Kai would have to pay for more days until the planes could lift off…Besides, it wasn't like he'd never shared a bed with any of the guys before; he just didn't like being so close to other people.

"I'm gonna take a sho…" the raven-haired teen started to say as he rummaged around in his duffel bag, stopping as he noticed the wall in which Kai was standing against straight across from him light up unnaturally. "On second thought, I think I'll wait."

"You're just a scared little kitten," Kai smirked as he stripped off his shirt and set it next to his own bag a few moments later, figuring that now definitely wasn't a good time to take a shower with the storm beginning.

"Better safe than sorry. I'm not getting my ass fried while I'm in there!" he protested as he too began to change into his night clothes, which consisted of nothing more or less than a pair of boxers and a skin tight tank top, which was slightly more than Kai usually slept in when he was alone, not that Rei knew this. But even tonight the bluenette chose to sleep without a shirt; just his boxers.

"Ne, Kai?"

"Hm?" he intoned as he folded his clothes up and placed them on the designated 'dirty clothes' side of his bag after finishing with his changing.

"Why are you going back to Russia? I thought that you hated it there."

Kai's usual frown deepened somewhat at the mention of his homeland. "I have some things I need to take care of. It's not like I'm staying there the entire time, just long enough to take care of what I need to."

"Where are you going after that?" Rei then inquired, freeing his raven locks from their prison, beginning to brush it as he sat in the middle of the bed with his legs crossed, facing the crimson-eyed teen.

Kai shrugged as he zipped up and tossed his bag to the floor before managing to take the brush away from Rei. He still hadn't figured out why yet, but he had a thing for Rei's long, silky hair and brushed it as often as he could, and Rei had yet to refuse him this 'honor'.

"Wherever I feel like going, I suppose," he finally replied as he gently ran the brush through Rei's hair, his free hand trailing down slowly behind the brush.

"You should come visit me and see what my home's really like," the amber-eyed teen suggested with a vague shrug, wincing slightly as the wall once again lit up from the streaks of lightning outside.

"Oh, yeah. I'm sure Lee and Mao would just love that. Ponytail or braid?"

Rei smiled. It still surprised him that Kai actually knew how to braid, let alone be gentle with his hair. "Ponytail. I could always lock you up in my room and they'd never know you were there."

"Are you gonna shackle me to your bedposts or something so I don't escape and go start a fight?" Kai teased, Rei's blush going unseen to him as he gently fought with the raven locks to get it into a ponytail.

"Yeah; that is if my mom hasn't found my fur-laced handcuffs," Rei then laughed, turning to face Kai while tucking his legs under himself once he felt the familiar weight of his hair settled down his back.

"You would be the only one to come up with something like that," the bluenette smirked as he brushed some of Rei's bangs behind his ear. Any other time, if they were in view of 'the public', being the boys or anyone else, Rei would blush with Kai touching his hair like that, but he was used to it when they were alone. He was glad that his team captain sometimes partially dropped his mask for him, revealing the true teen within.

"But seriously, you should come to China. I'm sure you'd enjoy it."

"And you're promising me a place to stay and food while I'm there, right?"

Rei nodded, his smile and eyes brightening. Kai's mask really was starting to slip.

After that, there really wasn't anything more to talk about, and so they ended up with a content silence surrounding them while they simply gazed into each other's eyes, almost as if for the first time.

But that time was short-lived, as their gazes then quickly focused to the window at the sound of heavy rain beating against the glass.

"We should get going to bed," Kai yawned as he glanced at the clock with its overly bright red numbers a few moments later.

Rei nodded then shivered as a chill ran down his spine, the air conditioning having just turned on and the vent was aimed towards his back. And in response to this, he was quickly beneath the warm haven of his covers, curling up against Kai's side as soon as the other teen was also beneath the blanket; just as Rei was accustomed to Kai playing with his hair, Kai was so to Rei's stealing his body heat when they were more or less forced to share a bed together.

It wasn't easy to come by a suite during major tournaments, and rooms were sparse as well during those times, so whether he liked it or not, Kai was sometimes forced to room with his teammates. And nine times out of ten, he made Max, Takao, and Kyouju share as bed, seeing as they were 'not so grown up' or 'small and childish' in Kai's eyes and said that because he and Rei were older than them that it was only right that they share a bed and that they needed more room. But that wasn't very true considering the fact that during those nine times out of ten, Kyouju was found sleeping on the floor the next morning because of Takao unintentionally kicking him off and Max was usually found sleeping on what little space was left from the energetic bluenette's sprawled out limbs, whereas Rei was usually curled up against or partially sleeping on Kai in the center of the bed.

Once comfortable, Kai drifted off to sleep, but Rei was eluded of his dreamtime. But he stayed there like usual, curled up against Kai's side, almost as if he really were a kitten. And in almost being like a cat, he hated water, at least of the pouring rain variety, and storms had always given him the chills, thus his sleep elusion.

With sleep-deprived eyes, though his body was drained, he stared outside, wincing every time a lighting bolt tore through the sky and shivered in fear as the thunder erupted shortly after them. And, thankfully, Kai was used to this so he wouldn't be easily woken, though he was never easily woken to begin with, and so it remained a mystery as to how Kai was up before everyone else without the aid of loud, annoying alarms clocks.

For hours the neko-jin remained awake, the air conditioning having kicked off for a short break, the room heating slightly, though not enough to bother the pair on the bed, but with Kai's added body heat, Rei couldn't stand it any longer. So with an irritated sigh, not really wanting to move at all, the raven-haired teen slid out from beneath the covers and walked over to the window, deciding that he was going to at least attempt to calm his fear of storms, if not conquer it altogether.

'It's so beautiful, yet frightening at the same time,' Rei mused as he perched himself on the windowsill. And there he sat for who knows how long, simply staring and thinking.

When he thought his fears had subsided enough to go to sleep, he turned to slide off the sill, freezing when he came face to face with Kai.

"How…how long have you been there?!" he managed around his shock.

Kai smirked as Rei continued to slide down off the sill. "Just a few minutes; the bed was cold."

"Oh, well, I'm headed back there now," he grinned, truly tired now, tipping a little before catching himself, forcing his eyes to stay open.

Without warning, Rei was lifted off the floor, the sudden and unexpected movement temporarily waking him until he was nestled comfortably in Kai's embrace.

"Do you think you're dreaming of a girl or something?" the amber-eyed teen murmured against Kai's neck as he carried Rei across the small distance to the bed before laying him down.

"Why do you say that?" he asked as he sat down on the edge of the bed, turning his body slightly while also spilling partially over Rei.

"You wouldn't carry me, let alone anyone else, like that unless you were dreaming, right?"

"I just did, didn't I?"

"But why?" he asked, his voice barely audible as he drifted closer and closer to sleep with each breath.

"Just sleep," Kai replied softly, kissing the boy on the forehead, his mask totally removed for the time being, but Rei didn't get to see it for he was sound asleep.

Truth was, Kai didn't have an answer to Rei's question, other than he simply felt the urge to carry him. But that would cause a mess of questions if he told the sleeping boy that. And he himself didn't have enough answers to any of his own questions about Kon Rei. But he did have one.

"I think I'm falling for you," he whispered, after he too crawled back under the covers, while wrapping his arms around Rei's slender body before joining him in a realm of peaceful slumber.

Owari?

I thought about maybe writing another chapter or two to this, but I kinda like how it came out. What do you think?


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimers: I don't own Beyblade; I'm simply using the characters for my and my muse's entertainment.

Falling by Yaoi Girl

It was early morning, much too early to be woken by the sun or to even be thinking about crawling out of bed for that matter, but Kai's eyelids furrowed in pain in his sleep before he slowly opened them.

His chest hurt, not like a heart attack pain or anything of that sort, but the pain of fingernails being dragged slowly across his flesh by a still sleeping Rei.

Kai sat up slightly, Rei's head rolling slightly down from his shoulder as the boy rose, his fingernails still digging deeply into Kai's skin. The red and raised flesh was trailing from the bluenette's chest and heading down to his stomach in a diagonal pattern, as the raven-haired teen was sleeping half on/off of Kai. And the lower his fingers trailed, the more pressure was applied until Kai snatched the teen's hands, wincing as the blood came seeping out of the lower wounds and began to sting.

No sooner than Kai had grabbed Rei's wrists, the boy tensed and tried to back away, whimpering and fighting slightly though he was still sound asleep. And seeing Rei like that tore at Kai's heart, so he instantly released his gentle grip on the boy and moved him off of his body so he could reach for a tissue to try and soak up what little blood was coming from the scratch marks, figuring that Rei would wake up now since he no longer had Kai's body heat; the raven-haired teen often woke up shortly after Kai would leave the bed, being it him leaving to get a drink or whatnot and couldn't fall back asleep until he was warmed once again.

After that was done, he noticed that Rei was still asleep acting a little weird, like he was still having a nightmare. So he tried to wake him by gently calling his name, which received no response, so then he shook him, to which he also received nothing but another whimper and a slight flinch.

With a sigh, Kai gathered the boy to his chest, resting Rei's head beneath his chin as he cradled him on his lap, the neko-jin's legs in the vacant spot that Kai had just scooped him from.

"Kai," came a breath against the boy's skin before a gentle finger trailed down one of the scratch wounds a few moments later. "I'm sorry."

The feeling of Rei's finger just lightly touching him was driving him insane, not that he didn't like it mind you, but he didn't want to upset Rei by telling him to stop because he was sure it would come out harshly, and he feared what the outcome would be if he let Rei continue. So, instead, he laced his fingers with the amber-eyed teen's.

"It's fine, Rei. You were having a bad dream."

"But still, I feel bad," he replied as he pulled his head up, revealing still tired eyes to Kai.

"I'm not going to die from this," he smirked.

"No; but I still feel bad because I hurt you," Rei then said as he lowered his head to the bluenette's shoulder, cuddling against him sadly with an arm draped around Kai's neck and over the opposite shoulder as his 'pillow' whereas his other arm was wrapped the opposite way around the boy's neck.

"You think something like this can compare to anything that I've been through," Kai said, his voice low and distant.

Rei knew that Kai was referring to his time at the abbey and didn't want to say anything to further upset his friend, so he simply tightened his arms around him in sympathy while tears began to sting his eyes.

"Rei, don't cry for me; I'm not worth it," the bluenette said in that same low and distant voice as he felt the warm drops roll down his own skin.

"Don't say that!" came the somewhat angered response as Rei snapped his head up to face Kai, his arms still wrapped around his shoulders.

"Now I've hurt you," Kai said, more so to himself, his voice concerned as his eyes danced back and forth with teary amber ones, both seemingly searching for something. "Why do you care about me?"

"You're my friend, Kai."

"Friend…I've never had any friends until I met you guys, and I…" he started, breaking eye contact with Rei. "I'm still not sure that I like having friends."

"What?" was all the raven-haired teen could manage, that simple word coming out in a mere breath of disbelief while his arms fell limp and began to slide off the other teen's shoulders.

"I don't like to depend on people."

"You're such a selfish bast…" Rei began rather darkly, stopping as one of Kai's fingers covered his lips.

"But I am depending on you guys to want me to have friends, to make more. And I…" he stopped, his mask gone once again as he again broke eye contact with Rei and swallowed what he was about to admit, his mind worried that Rei would push the subject and that he'd have no choice but to tell him. He had already done quite a bit of damage to Rei just in the past ten minutes.

Amber eyes brightened slightly at the sight, his eyes alone forgiving and apologizing. This is what he had longed to see, the real Kai, full of worries, doubts and every other human quality that he himself possessed.

And as much as Rei wanted to see this side of his best friend, sleep was winning him over once again, and after a cat-like yawn Rei gently pressed against Kai's shoulders in a silent command to lay back down as he tucked his head beneath the bluenette's chin.

The crimson-eyed teen obliged and wrapped his arms around the raven-haired teen as he leaned back slowly, pulling the covers back over their bodies once his blue locks came into firm contact with his pillows. He understood that Rei would want to talk about this in the morning, and that was fine because now he had some time to think.

Time ticked on slowly and Kai could've sworn that Rei had finally fallen back asleep, as the other hadn't moved from his position since they laid back down, but was rather surprised to find that he was, in fact, awake.

"What's wrong? Your heart's beating so fast…" Rei said worriedly as he listened, his ear having been pressed against Kai's chest.

"I just woke up from a nightmare," he lied.

And Rei saw right through it. With laughter in his tired voice, he simply said, "Go to sleep."

'He'll find out soon on his own if I don't tell him first,' Kai thought, his heart rate having increased as his mind played out romantic settings, and that kinda scared him, because Kai wasn't usually like this. 'I can't keep lying to him…'

======

"Ugh…So tired," Rei complained the next morning as he and Kai dragged their tired bodies onto the plane; the storm had decided that one night was enough, almost as if it had a hand in playing out what had happened between the pair last night and it was satisfied with the results.

"Whose fault's that?" Kai yawned as he plopped into a window seat, Rei practically lying down across the two seats to curl up to Kai in attempt to get some more rest. The pair had to travel to China together anyway, and then Kai would switch planes to continue on his way to Russia.

"The storms," he mumbled.

"Go to sleep."

"More than happy to." And with that, he proceeded to do so after buckling in, resting against Kai's comfy shoulder.

In the mad dash they had made this morning in order to get to the airport on time, as in gathering their things and showering, Rei didn't have time to put his hair up, so he had simply pony-tailed it, or tried. Kai smirked at the image that played in his mind from the hotel during that mad dash with Rei holding his hair up with one hand after having brushed it into a pony-tail with the hair tie resting between his lips as he had ran across the room to grab his bag before Kai had left him behind.

Rei had failed and completely given up on the attempt on the way down the stairs, the elevators being packed with the other people also heading to the airport, what with the bag in one hand and all there wasn't much he could do. So now the bluenette got to enjoy the sight of the raven-haired teen with his hair completely free, as it rarely was, and was/is enjoying every moment of the sight.

He thought for sure as they had walked through the busy airport not too long ago that Rei would hear what the people were saying about them, not that anything they said was bad, just embarrassing, especially if they found out that Rei wasn't a girl. If Rei had heard, he said nothing.

'Look at them! They're such a cute couple!' 'I'd die to have hair like hers!' were the common two his ears picked up along with a few odd ones that the bluenette couldn't recall and then the occasional beyblade fan that KNEW it was Rei.

'Can you believe that Kai and Rei are together like that?! I wonder if they're going out or something?' he could still see those two girls clearly in his mind, mainly because of the look of pure bliss on their faces at the thought of them as an actual couple. He could see the rumors flying already. If only they were true…

For several hours, Kai was in wonderland, daydreaming of none other than himself and Rei until he was bounced slightly out of his chair, the sudden movement jarring the raven-haired teen from his sleep.

"Wha…What's going on, Kai?" he asked as he sat up and rubbed his eyes, beginning to stretch shortly after until he was suddenly thrown forward. And his face would've collided with the back of the seat in front of him if Kai hadn't caught him and pulled him back, and into a rather odd position for the pair with Rei seated directly in Kai's lap and the other teen's arms wrapped tightly around him.

"Are you alright?" Kai asked as the raven-haired, and slightly shaken up, teen slid from his lap and into his own seat, quickly fastening his seatbelt as they were instructed to do. Turbulence was also something else that Rei feared, especially when he was high in the sky and helpless if something did happen to the plane. He hated falling, hated the feeling it caused in the pit of his stomach, although roller coasters never caused him this problem; in fact, he loved roller coasters. Actually, it was any type of falling that he hadn't expected that he hated the most.

It was smooth for a few minutes until they experienced a rather sharp gust, Rei's fingers lace with Kai's in fear, his other hand clawing at the armrest.

"It'll be fine, Rei," Kai soothed as he gave the boy's hand a gentle squeeze, his eyes calm and assuring as their gazes locked. He hated the pure terror that he found residing in those gorgeous amber eyes at that moment.

The plane jerked violently a few times shortly after that, screams erupting from some of the passengers, including Rei who clamped his eyes shut tightly and squeezed on Kai's hand and the armrest until his knuckles where pure white; Kai was sure his hand was going to be crushed if this continued on much longer. Thankfully, it didn't. Just one more harsh jerk then a couple small shakes.

Once he realized that it was safe, for the time being anyway, Rei slowly, shakily released his hand from Kai's and the armrest, his breathing heavy from the fear and adrenaline while his eyes were wide with a hint of fear still residing in them although he was staring unseeingly into the back of the chair in front of him.

"Rei? Are you alright?"

Rei swallowed his uneasiness and blinked slowly a few times before turning to face Kai with a small, very small smile. "I'll be alright. I think…"

======

The rest of the trip had gone smoothly and Rei decided to stay awake for the remainder of the flight. And several silent and long stretched hours later, they were in a Chinese airport, facing each other.

"So, um…how long do you have until your flight leaves?"

"Twenty minutes."

Rei nodded and absently rubbed his arm with the opposite hand, his gaze locked to the floor, almost shyly.

And there they stood, Kai looking around and glancing at the passers, occasionally looking to Rei. This was gonna hurt, even though he would only be away from him for a couple days, a week at the most. Rei, on the other hand, felt odd about the situation, but couldn't figure out as to why. Any other time, he and the rest of the guys would love to ship him off to some remote country to terrorize the natives about beyblading perfectly and the like, but this was different; Kai's mask was off, so he didn't know how to react.

"Rei! REI!!!!"

At the sudden burst of a female voice, both teens snapped their attention to the girl running towards them at full speed, the raven-haired teen barely catching a glimpse of the girl as she threw herself at him and enveloped him in a hug.

"Kalli!" he laughed somewhat, returning his younger sisters embrace as he then looked from the top of her head to his approaching mother. "Mom!"

Kai watched from the sidelines as the family happily greeted each other, a stab of jealousy filling his heart at the sight; how he longed for a loving family and a normal life…

"Mom, Kalli, this is Kai, the Bladebreaker's team captain," the amber-eyed teen introduced them after their group hug was complete and he had pried Kalli off of his arm.

"Isn't that the guy that you call a je…OW! Rei! What did you do that for?!" she yelped as she rubbed her reddening skin on her upper arm, seeing as her brother had just pinched her. "I mean, nice to meet you, Kai! I'm Kalli," she chirped as though nothing had happened just a moment ago.

She was shorter than Rei and only came up to his shoulders if she stood on her tip-toes. She also had those alluring amber eyes and the long, raven hair, though her hair was pinned up in a bun on both sides of her head. And just as Rei usually was, she was adorned in her native robes.

Rei's mother then smiled down at Kai.

'She's nothing like them,' he mused as he returned a smile. 'Brown hair and green eyes…they must've got their hair and eye color from their father.' He couldn't really tell how long her hair was, but guessed it was shorter than Rei's, which came down to his knees, because he hair was down her native clothed back in a braid. And she was barely taller than Rei, not by more than three inches or so.

"I'm Mika," she greeted, shaking Kai's hand. He was rather taken aback that she hadn't bowed, but greeted him like this. "And if you haven't already gathered, I'm Rei's mother," she then giggled. He liked her. But then again, he didn't have his mask in place; who knows how she would act if he did have it on, then he might not like her at all.

"Hey, mom? Is it alright if Kai stays with us? Not now; he has a flight to catch in a few minutes to go to Russia, then he'll be coming back in a few days."

"I suppose," she smiled at both boys.

"Great!" Rei grinned, taking both of Kai's hands in his own in his excitement. "Call when you get ready to leave and we'll pick you up from here, alright?"

"Yeah, sure," he smiled back, reveling in the closeness, but that only lasted a few moments due to the fact that Kai's plane was now boarding.

Before Kai had the chance to turn to walk in that direction, however, Rei had gathered him into a hug, causing him to blush slightly at the unexpectedness of the action and because they were in public.

"Promise me something, Kai," the amber-eyed teen said as they released from their embrace. "Call me every night so I know that nothing bad has happened to you, alright?"

The bluenette nodded and smiled before turning and heading towards his plane, waving before he disappeared into the makeshift tunnel to the actual plane.

"Wow, you send letters to us calling him a jerk and other mean things, yet you're going out with him?!" his sister teased as they headed out of the airport shortly after the plane had safely taken off.

"We're not dating!" Rei said, blushing at the thought, both his mother and sister giggling like the females they were at the sight.

'You may not be now, but I have a feeling you will be soon…' Kalli thought as she climbed into the back seat of their vehicle.

TBC

Wow…I think this is the longest chapter I've ever written for anything! relaxes fingers for a few minutes

Anywho, what did ya think about this chappie? I think there will be two more chapters after this unless I end up with another long chapter…

Review! .;


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimers: I don't own Beyblade; I'm simply using the characters for my and my muse's entertainment.

Falling by Yaoi Girl

It was great to be home, at least this is the case for Rei, and he worried about how his friend would fair back at his home in Russia. He knew that Kai and his grandfather weren't on good terms and feared that he would be harmed while in the powerful man's presence. So being home wasn't all that great…

Once he had hauled his clothes bag in and let it sit with his shoes near the front door, soaked in water, Rei lazily climbed the stairs to his room with his journal under his arm, grumbling about the rain while brushing his dripping raven bangs from his eyes. After seeing that his room was still intact, as his sister had a habit of rearranging his room when she was insanely bored, he changed into dry clothes and fell into his black beanbag chair which was located beneath the window, where he had kicked it to avoid seeing the rain pouring down, totally relaxed on the outside while his mind was screaming at him, still worried about Kai who was still on the plane.

'Kai can take care of himself,' the amber-eyed teen sighed as he thought while he relaxed his body even further into his beanbag, musing aloud then, "Besides, he's supposed to call me to let me know he's alright. If something were wrong, he'd tell me or ask for help, right?"

"You talkin' 'bout your boyfriend?" came a singsong voice from his doorframe.

"Shut up, Kalli!" he hissed. "Why are you in my room?"

She shrugged, smiling. "Just wanted to make sure that you were settled in."

He gave her one of those 'tell the truth' looks as he lazily crossed his arms over his chest.

"What? Can't I spend a little time with my big brother?"

"Fine," he sighed in defeat. Sure, Kalli was annoying at times, especially when he wanted to be alone and relax, but little sisters are supposed to annoy you whenever possible. Besides, he hadn't seen her in almost a year.

"So, if you two aren't goin…"

"Kalli," he hissed low in warning, glowering at her while his irises turned to slits. "If all you're going to talk about is Kai, you can just leave now."

"It's not like I was gonna ask you if I could have him," he smiled innocently as she flopped herself stomach down onto her brother's bed while propping her chin in her palms, her feet swinging back and forth in the air above her back. "I just wanted to know what was going on between you two."

"We're just friends, okay?" he huffed, sighing irritably right afterward while he grabbed for his TV remote.

"But you want to be more?"

At this, Rei rolled his eyes. "Yeah, right. And I'm sure that he'd just open his arms for me."

"How do you know if you don't try?"

"I was being sarcastic," he replied monotonously as he flipped through the channels.

Kalli then rolled over onto her back and scooted herself down slightly so that she was hanging halfway off the bed, upside down.

"So you're not interested in him a tiny little bit?"

Oh, how he wanted to grab her hair and just slam her head into his floor, or rather her own so that way he had the joy of dragging a screaming girl down the hallway and then bloodying her carpet. Then he would most certainly have to face his mother…

"I told you, if all you're going to talk about…"

"…is Kai, then leave," she mocked before pulling herself back onto the bed, now laying to face the TV with a sigh. "This is so boring. I thought older brothers were supposed to be fun!"

"If you don't like it, then get out," he shrugged, setting the remote on his stomach once he had found something worth watching.

The girl sighed, her eyes lazily drifting over the room that had practically been sealed off from humanity since her brother left. Until…

Glancing to her brother, she reached her hand out slowly, grabbing something from his pillow before bringing it to lay in front on her, opening it and flipping through the pages quietly until she seen the name Kai appear.

'Nothing of interest here,' she mentally sighed, as it was the entry in his journal from when he had first met the BladeBreakers team captain. Surely her brother had more entertaining things to read…For at least fifteen minutes she skimmed through the thin book before something rather interesting caught her eye.

"Who is this?"

"Who are you ta..? KALLI?! What are you doing reading that?!" he growled as he shot up out of his beanbag, snatching the earlier carelessly thrown journal away from his sister.

She shrugged carelessly. "I wasn't really reading it. I was looking at the pictures."

"I don't care! I don't go around reading your things," he growled as he carelessly dropped back into his comfortable haven, opening his journal to the picture that she was talking about just out of curiosity. "It's me and Kai."

"How was I supposed to know what you look like with your hair down? I thought you were jealous of Kai's girlfriend or something and you chased after them, taking a picture so you knew what she looks like so you could stalk her," she again shrugged as she sat up and stretched.

"He's never had a girlfriend, or if he has, he's never mentioned her to anyone. And you let your imagination play too much."

"I'm young and supposed to have an active imagination!" the eleven-year-old girl grinned triumphantly as she stood up on the mattress, her hands on her hips as if saying 'I'm the almighty powerful one!'

Rei couldn't help but grin at her.

"So, are you?"

"Am I what?"

"Interested in him at all?"

He frowned and rolled his eyes, but decided to answer in order to get her out of his room, which might not happen anyway.

"A little, and I mean very little."

It was her turn to give one of the 'tell the truth' looks from her standing position atop Rei's mattress, the newly lain bedclothes now rumpled slightly beneath her.

"It's true! It may seem like I like him quite a bit, but he's…just not my type, I guess," he sighed, not fully understanding the situation himself. "I'm just closer to him than I am the other guys, so a lot of people make that assumption about Kai and me."

"And just who is this 'lot of people'?"

The male neko-jin blushed slightly as he again focused on the TV. "Like people at the airport and even Max is convinced that Kai and I have something going on. But all we do is share a bed when we can because neither one of us likes to sleep with Kyouju because he tends to snore, Max because he's a cover hog, and Takao doesn't leave anything for you to sleep on most of the time. And it's not like I'm going to tell the guys what I just said about them because they might be offended."

"Do you cuddle up to him?" she grinned evilly as she jumped up and put her legs out in front of her before her bottom came in contact with the navy blue sheets; Rei was surprised that his bed frame hadn't come flying apart from her landing impact.

"Do you have to know everything?! I told you, there's nothing between us other than friendship!" he growled in irritation.

"I knew it!" she crowed excitedly. "You do!"

"So what if I do? I get cold at night and he shares his body heat," he shrugged, trying to sound uninterested so his sister would drop the conversation.

After he admitted it, he could see his sisters amber eyes light up with images in her mind of the pair in bed together.

"You are so…" he started, turning his head to the doorway as his mother appeared, holding the phone out to him.

"I believe this is the call you've been waiting for?" she smiled as she walked across the room, handing him the phone before retreating, beckoning for her daughter to follow, who reluctantly did so.

"Hello?" he asked, unsure if it was whom he was expecting to call, since his mother didn't seem entirely to sure either. For all he knew, it could be Mao or Lee, or even one of his other teammates.

"You miss me yet?" came the rather uncharacteristic response, to which Rei smiled as he turned his TV off.

"Maybe a little. Do you miss me?" he played along, though it did seem a little awkward since it was Kai he was talking to.

'You have no idea how much,' he thought with a small smile. "Not really."

"Jerk," the raven-haired teen laughed. "Did you just arrive?"

"Yeah; I'm still at the airport. My ride is on the way."

"Are you worried?"

"Not really. I just hope I can make it to you in once piece though; I heard he's not too thrilled with my coming home unannounced."

"If you don't make it back in one piece, I'm sure I can find some duct-tape lying around here somewhere," Rei teased, receiving a 'hn' for a response from Kai. "I know, I shouldn't say something like that, seeing as it is your grandfather…"

"Don't worry about it."

Both sighed; Rei knew that Kai was currently safe but had nothing else really to ask or say to him, and Kai had kept his end of the deal so far about calling daily and announcing that he was still alive. But neither wanted the conversation to end, though there currently wasn't one.

"So…I guess you need to watch for your ride?" the neko-jin asked, wincing slightly in distaste of his own words and uncertain voice.

"Yeah, I probably better go. I'll talk to you maybe later tonight, but tomorrow for sure."

"I'll be waiting."

TBC

I couldn't really think of anything else to add in this chapter without making it incredibly long, since it's focusing on Kai the next round, so I'll leave this chapter as is.

Could I trouble you for a review? grins manically


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I don't own Beyblade; I'm simply using the character for my and my muse's entertainment.

I live! And I'm SOOOOOOOO sorry for not updating this sooner! Well, I haven't really had much time to since I've been to basic training (Aug. 9-Oct 21 '04), then to part 1 of AIT (Oct. 22-Dec. 18th? '04), home for 2 weeks (very busy time), part 2 of AIT (Jan. 3?-March 2 '05), home for two weeks (more busy times doing 'work' with the recruiters), and now I'm at my first duty station at Ft. Irwin, CA and I've been here since March 19th.

Now that I'm, for the most part, settled in, I should be updating a lot of my fics very soon! When I'm not working that is...

Falling by Yaoi Girl

Luckily for Kai, his flight landed during the later hours of the night in Russia. When he and Rei had scheduled their flights a couple weeks back, he didn't even think of the time zone difference, and was very pleased with the 3 a.m. arrival.

Once he had finished his mini-conversation with Rei on the phone, Kai picked up his duffel and headed for the pick-up terminal, waiting for his ride in the chilly Russian night. He actually kinda missed home, or rather his homeland more-so than his actual residence.

"May I take your bag, Master Kai?" came a older male voice from his right, causing him to jump ever so slightly before turning to face his driver who was smiling warmly down at him.

"No, thanks. I've got it," he replied as the back door of his private vehicle was opened for him and he climbed in, the door shutting moments later.

"I take it then that you won't be staying the night at the mansion?" the driver then asked as he settled into his own seat and put the car into gear.

"No; I just need to grab some paperwork from my room as well as a couple other things."

"I see. So would you like for me to drive you to a hotel for the night then, Master Kai?"

"If it's not too much trouble..."

"Not at all, Master Kai."

There were very few people that worked for his grandfather that Kai actually trusted, let alone liked. This driver always happened to be one of his favorite servants and was very glad that this man was the one to pick him up. If it was another of the drivers or servants, they more than likely wouldn't let Kai leave the mansion once they reached it, let alone offer him a ride to a hotel.

The bluenette had forgotten just how far it was from the airport to his grandfather's mansion, nearly an hour and a half drive. Maybe he wasn't so lucky for having a flight that landed at 3 a.m. If they didn't get there soon, his grandfather would be awake and waiting for him, then he definately wouldn't be able to escape to a hotel to get some rest and take care of his issues.

"Is something troubling you?"

"Not really..." Kai lied.

"You seem rather tense about something..."

"It's just that I don't want to face him. I know how upset he must be about my being home."

"I see. But it still seems that you have something else on your mind."

"It's more of a someone than something..." Kai admitted as he rested his chin his palm, staring out the window into the snowy darkness.

"So young Master Kai has finally found someone!" the driver said more or less to himself with a smile.

At this, even Kai found his lips twitching upward slightly.

"So, when do I get to meet this lucky young girl?"

All traces of a smile that graced Kai's lips instantly vanished as his head lifted from his palm and his crimson eyes went wide in shock.

"What's the matter, Master Kai? You look like you've seen a ghost."

The bluenette shook himself from his stupor as he stared quizically at his now laughing driver.

"So the rumors are true about you being with your fellow teammate, I see."

"What!"

"Is the Chinese teen not the one then?"

"How did you hear about that!"

"Rumor has it that you were seen with one of your teammates, hugging and holding hands no less in a public airport."

Kai sighed and slumped back deeply into his seat.

"He's the one, but...it's not mutual. He sees us as nothing more than friends."

"So you've finally found a true love other than blading, I take it?"

"Does grandfather know of this rumor?"

"I'm not sure. Yuri had called ealier, seeing as he knew that you were coming home and had informed one of the staff about what he had heard from a friend in China."

"That loudmouth..." Kai growled under his breath. Yuri was gonna die...

"What are you going to do if your grandfather asks about it?"

"I'll tell him that it's just a rumor and act like the cold hearted bastard that I am," Kai shrugged, sounding disinterested.

"You have ten minutes to get your things before he wakes up. Can you manage to gatger everything in that amount of time?" the driver then asked as the pulled up in front of the mansion just moments later.

"Not a problem," the crimson-eyed teen said as he got out of the vehicle and quickly ran up the sidewalk and into the house.

Once Kai reached his room, he frowned at the sight of it. His grandfather truly was upset about him coming home, given the current state of his room, with his matress and bed clothes on the floor, his curtains torn down, papers scattered through the room, pictures torn and frames shattered. Thankfully his grandfather didn't know about his little hiding place for important things, like his paperwork that he came home to get along with a ring and necklace that his mother had left behind for him when she died a couple years ago.

With his important items and some more clothes in hand, Kai quickly made his escape back to the vehicle and to a hotel.

"If you need anything else, don't hesitate to call," the driver said as Kai climbed out of the vehicle and stood on the sidewalk in front of the hotel with his duffel in hand. "And good luck with your special someone."

They quickly exchanged farewells and then Kai headed into the building, rented a suite for the next couple of days and locked himself up there.

Because of the jet lag, Kai was extremely tired and so crashed on the bed for several hours, waking up late in the afternoon only to order himself some food from room service and pick up the phone for one more important call.

"Sorry, did I wake you?"

"Kai!" Rei cried out excitedly. "I was taking a nap, but it's no big deal."

"You don't have to worry about me coming there all mangled. I got everything I need earlier this morning and I'm hiding out at a hotel until I have all this paperwork done. Once I get it turned over to the right places, I'll be on the next flight to China."

The neko-jin smiled sleepily. "That's good to hear."

"Since you know I'm safe now, do you want me to keep calling to let you know I'm alive?"

For some reason, it hurt Rei to hear Kai ask something like that when it made sense. They agreed only to take everyday to let Rei know that Kai was safe from harm.

"If you want to..."

"What's wrong?"

"I can't really describe it..." Rei sighed, switching the phone to his other ear. "I want you to call, but then again there's really no reason for you because I know you totally safe. We agreed that..."

"I know what we agreed. But I'm asking if you want me to keep calling or not."

"Yes." And before Rei could stop himself, that one word had so desperatly came spilling from his mouth. "I...I mean, only if you feel the need to call and let me know something!" Rei then hurriedly blurted out.

This sudden change of voice confused Kai somewhat, but he said nothing.

"I'm going to get started on this paperwork, so I'll call whenever I can."

"Alright," Rei said. "Then I'll talk to you later?"

"Yeah. Bye."

"Bye," the raven-haired teen said and pushed the off button, setting the phone aside. "What's wrong with me!" he then groaned as he rolled to lay on his back once more.

TBC


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I don't own Beyblade; I'm simply using the characters for my and my muses' entertainment.

Notes: ( '.'); I'M SO SORRY! Work's been keeping my busy, so the only free time I have I either spend playing video games, bowling, or cuddling with my b/f if he's not pissing me off by acting like a childish perv…And since I'm at work on the weekend with only one patient to feed knocks on wood cause she doesn't want more than one, if any patients for the rest of the weekend I have plenty of time to either clean, do some online courses, or this. So I chose to update…for now until I either get bored with this or if my NCO comes in (aka Sergeant Leak). Now on with the updating!

Falling by Yaoi Girl

Despite the fact that he was so confused about what was going on inside him, he just added to it by lying to Kai, albeit a small lie.

He hadn't been able to sleep at all since his departure with the blunette, not even a cat nap.

Not to mention he was scared beyond anything he could recall that he had somehow, over the many tournaments, become addicted, so to speak, of Kai's body and heat, like a giant teddy bear if you will.

And his mother had been noticing her son's rather odd behavior as of late too.

And so, being the caring and worrisome mother that she is, Mika stopped by her son's room on her way to bed some hours after the phone call.

She didn't even have to open the door to see just how tired her son was, as Rei's door was wide open, his light off and sleep-deprived eyes illuminated from the hallway light, as was the rest of his body as he lay stomach down with his arms tucked under his chest.

He knew his mother was coming, but he didn't in the slightest try to cover up his sleepiness by jumping up and acting wide awake or rolling over to act like he was asleep. That's just how exhausted Rei was.

"Honey," Mika smiled sympathetically as she entered his room and sat on the edge of his bed, brushing some stray bangs behind his ear. "What's been bothering you lately? Nightmares?"

"No," he merely breathed. "Just things."

"Have you even slept at all since you've been home?"

He lazily, and barely, shook his head against his pillow. "Not since Kai left."

"Rei, are you worried about him?"

"Yes."

"So much that you can't sleep?"

"No."

She knew her son was tired and she was more than likely going to have to play twenty questions to make sense of her son's behavior. And knowing that it dealt with Kai made it somewhat easier.

"Are you worried he's going to find someone else while he's home?"

"What do you mean someone else? He doesn't even have someone right now."

"Oh. I assumed that you two were…"

"Yeah, right. As if Kai would date a guy. Besides," he responded in an actual voice rather than in whispers and breaths like before, his eyes a little more awake. "I don't even like him like that. At least, not enough to want to date him."

"I think you're afraid to get hurt, so you're not trying to follow what your heart tells you."

"Well, yeah. Do you think I want to be looked at like a freak?"

"What's so freakish about dating another guy? Honestly, Rei?" Mika asked as she stood, kneeling beside the head of the bed, gently cupping her son's cheek. "Tell me."

"It's just not right."

"As long as you're happy, what makes a difference?"

"Knowing that…"

"Rei," she cut in, knowing her son wasn't seeing the situation as she was. "Is it wrong to love something that's no human?"

"No, I guess not. But people still look at them like freaks."

"But most people are freaks by your terms then because most people have animals that they love with all their hearts, do they not?"

"People love animals like children, no lovers, mom."

"It doesn't matter. Love is love. So what if people look at you differently? If they're your true friends they'll stick by your side no matter what, right? And since when have you even cared what people thought about you? You go out and blade your heart out in front of television cameras that are aired all over the world, and do you ever care how you look to other people then?"

"Alright, alright, mom. You win!" he smiled somewhat. "But still, I don't like Kai enough that way to date him. We're just really close friends. Nothing more."

"We'll see, Rei. We'll see," she grinned neko-jin like as she kissed his forehead and stood, turning to leave his room.

"Thanks, mom."

"You're welcome. Now get some sleep."

Still, Rei couldn't sleep despite the fact that he felt better for clearing up some of emotions about Kai with that talk with his mother. His only problem now was he needed a substitute for Kai's body to curl up with.

But nothing worked. Not his giant fluffy panda that had been stuffed away in his corner for ages, not the clothes that he had worn when he went to bed the night before with Kai's scent on them. He had even gone so far as to wake up his little sister and ask if she would sleep with him that night, but nothing worked in the slightest. He –needed- Kai.

But little did Rei know just how much Kai needed him at this point in time…

TBC

o.O; Wow, Q-berry (aka Dingleberry, one of the guys I have the misfortune to work with) came in to get some candy that Sergeant Leak had bought for all of us for Halloween and scared the jebbus out of me!

More than likely, if I only have that one patient the rest of the day (she should be gone today though…) I may add another chapter to this. Unless I kick myself into cleaning mode and buff the kitchen floor (unlikely) or clean the tables and stuff out front (more than likely)…


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimers: I don't own Beyblade; I'm simply using the characters for my and my muse's entertainment.

* * *

Falling by Yaoi Girl

Kai wasn't in dire need of assistance or anything of the sort. He just needed something to entertain him.

Paper after paper needed his signature or a description of something or other and he was so tired of it! Why couldn't he have normal grandparents? Or a normal life for that matter?!

He sighed and set his pen down, the object then rolling off the desk as Kai rested his arms on the wooden thing and shook it just enough to cause the momentum for the pen to roll away to begin with. And he sighed again, not feeling like bending over to pick it up.

When he was bored, he usually sought out Rei to speak to or just sit with. His presence always seemed to calm him. But now that he was without Rei, he didn't know what to do to deal with his boredom and stress. And he didn't know how he was going to deal with it many years down the road, if they still at least remained as friends.

'If only he could understand my feelings…' he thought as he finally stood and padded slowly, lazily across the room to the bed, flopping down on his back, his limbs sprawled this way and that as he stared blankly up at the ceiling. 'If only I knew how to express them…'

Too tired and lazy to turn off the light, he simply laid an arm over his eyes and fell asleep, Rei haunting his every dream. It wasn't fair…

The next morning, he hurriedly finished his paperwork, gathered his things, and headed off down the snowy streets, stopping at this building and that, the paper load lessening with each building he entered. Until finally there was nothing left other than what he had came to Russia with.

He smiled, heading to the airport on foot, seeing as it was only a few miles away. Besides, it gave him time to window shop for gifts for Rei's family as thanks for letting him stay to begin with.

Once satisfied with his gifts, and upon his arrival to the airport, Kai booked him the next flight, first class of course, to China. And so he decided to call Rei.

Only no one answered…

He sighed as he closed his cell phone, nodding to himself as he decided it would be better to call a little while later, seeing as it was earlier there than where he was, so they were probably all asleep. And the last thing he needed was to anger the mother or sister.

So he sat, bored again, with no Rei to talk to. With no one to talk to. For three hours.

Finally, they began calling people to board the plane, in which Kai was thankful for. Now he just had a few hours to wait before he was next to his source of entertainment and calmness.

So he tried calling again…

"Hello?" came a rather light voice.

"Rei? What's wrong with you?"

The neko-jin's eyes widened somewhat as he recognized the voice, deciding it would be better to sound more awake now. But he couldn't…

"Kai! Nothing's wrong," he tried, but he still sounded miserable.

"Don't lie to me…" he warned.

"I'm not! I'm just tired. I didn't get much sleep."

"And why is that?"

Rei blushed. It was all he could do. "I just haven't been able to."

"Nightmares?"

"No."

Deciding he'd find out when he arrived, he told the other teen of his plans, and that he was heading his way as they spoke.

"So you should be here in about three or four hours, right?"

"Yeah, somewhere around there."

"Alright," he smiled as he slowly pushed himself upright on his bed. "I'll let mom know so we came come pick you up."

"I'll see you then. We're getting ready to take off now."

"Alright. See you then!"

And with what remaining energy he had left, he got up from his bed and ventured down the stairs to find his mother brushing his sister's hair in the living room while they watched cartoons of some sort.

"Kai's on his way!" he smiled as he stood next to the couch his mother was sitting on, his sister sitting on the floor between her legs.

"Good!" Mika breathed as she continued playing with her daughter's hair. "If he would've stayed there another day, I was going to knock you out with sleeping pills." And that was true. She didn't like seeing her son like that at all. "You'd better go shower and change before we leave."

Rei nodded before going back upstairs and grabbing him some clean clothes before heading to the shower.

He had to admit, the hot water felt very nice. It oriented his senses a bit more than what they were, rejuvenating him in a way.

A loud pound came on the door some, what seemed like, minutes later, scaring the neko-jin enough to jump.

"What?"

"Are you almost done? You've been in there almost an hour now!" came Kalli's voice through the door.

"Are you serious?" he asked himself as he quickly turned off the water taps and dried himself. The fun part was taming his hair.

And another fifteen minutes had passed before he completely managed to get the knots out of his raven locks and his hair tied up in a braid.

He emerged, now fully clothed and still damp from the steam in the room, but felt nice.

"You look like you're ready to go out on a dinner date," Kalli smirked as her brother came downstairs, dressed in a silk black dress shirt and some comfy, but nice dark blue jeans, and a black collar around his neck. "And I don't think you're date's here yet."

He glared at her as he pulled on his dress boots. He just felt like dressing up a little today. That was all. Wasn't he entitled to feel pretty every once in a while?

Mika smiled as she and Kalli joined him at the door. "You do look like you're ready for a date."

"Not you too!" he groaned as the headed out the door.

"Why else would you get all dressed up for just to pick up a friend from the airport?"

He blushed and jammed his hands in his pockets, kicking at the ground. The girls he had to deal with…

Once they had left the house, Rei found himself leaning his head against the glass of the door as he sat in the backseat. Tired again but still unable to sleep.

"I'm sure you'll be able to sleep on the way back," Mika grinned through the mirror at her son, but he didn't do anything to acknowledge what she had just said. He just continued to stare out the window, glaring tiredly at the rain.

An eternity later, they reached the airport, but Rei was too exhausted again to even think about getting out of the car, so Mika agreed to go in and find Kai, along with Kalli.

And he couldn't help but grin as some minutes later, he caught sight of all his problems, heading his way with his duffle bag slung over his shoulder, actually smiling and talking.

But Kai's smiled faded and his eyes became confused and worried as he seen Rei resting against the door, eyes tired and lifeless. And so he quickly climbed in the other side of the backseat and grabbed the amber eyed teen by the shoulders, turning him to face himself.

"I knew something was wrong with you!"

"And I told you I just couldn't sleep very well."

"You mean you actually slept?" Mika asked, surprised as she started the car.

"Mom!" he hissed.

Now Kai was getting angry. "You haven't slept?"

Rei sighed as he finally just slumped against Kai's shoulder, Kai wrapping his arms around Rei and squeezing him gently.

"Not since you left."

"Why?"

"I…I ne…I just couldn't. Okay?" he managed as he snuggled closer to the heat, to the scent, to Kai.

"Just go to sleep," Kai breathed in his ear. "I'll be here when you wake up."

A small, tired smile graced Rei's lips before his eyes finally fell shut.

"Thank goodness!" Mika sighed as she seen her son sleeping soundly in Kai's arms. "He hasn't slept a wink since we left the airport the other day. He was that worried about you."

"Worried about me?" he mused, looking down at the teen in his arms, resting his cheek against the top of Rei's raven hair.

Once they reached the house, Mika found both of the boys sound asleep, comfortable in the other's embrace and couldn't help but smile.

"They're so in love," Kalli nodded as she and her mother got out of the car. "Too bad Rei's so blind."

At this Mika laughed. "What do you know about love, Kalli?"

"Enough to know that my brother's happy with this person."

* * *

Sorry about the forever and a half that it took to update! I've been working on other stories in different series and fighting with writer's blocks...so not fun! But after I watched some Kai/Rei vids on YouTube, I decided to update :P 


	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimers: I don't own Beyblade; I'm simply using the characters for my and my muse's entertainment.

* * *

Falling by Yaoi Girl

Mika didn't want to wake them, with as peaceful as they looked and all, but she knew the rain was only going to get worse from here and she knew how much Rei despised storms. She knew that they'd get better rest if they were inside and on a bed rather than sitting up on some worn in car seat.

So she decided to let Kai do the waking.

She gently shook him a couple times before his head rolled this way and that and his crimson eyes slowly fluttered open.

"I'm sorry, Kai," Mika smiled as she crouched down in the open car door. "But could you get Rei inside? It's going to start storming soon."

Kai nodded, still trying to blink the sleep away from his eyes. "Sure thing."

And with that she stood and headed up the sidewalk towards the house.

'Since it's the first time he's slept in a couple days, I don't want to wake him,' Kai thought as he somehow managed to maneuver himself with Rei in his arms out of the open car door and then shutting it behind himself without dropping the neko-jin male. 'Rei wasn't kidding when he said I'd like it here…'

As he slowly walked up the sidewalk in the drizzle, he took in the lush flower gardens on either side of the sidewalk and the tall shady trees all around the two story house, secluding it from the world.

Mika had left the front door open for them, and so he entered the threshold, careful not to bump either Rei's feet or head against the wooden frame.

"Follow me!" Kalli grinned, beckoning for the bluenette to follow her. And follow her he did up the stairs, looking from picture to picture on the walls, inwardly smiling at how cute of a child Rei was. "This is his room."

And with that, she pushed open the door before disappearing back downstairs.

Kai laid Rei down on his bed before turning to close the door, the neko-jin mumbling something while reaching an arm out in Kai's direction, still asleep. He couldn't help but smile.

He took off his shoes and Rei's before climbing onto the bed next to the amber eyed teen, slowly and carefully removing the black leather collar from around Rei's neck; he didn't want to be scraped by the buckle when the other started to cuddle with him, as much as he liked it on Rei.

After setting the collar aside on the nightstand, Kai scooted himself over a little ways and sat up, closer to the center of the bed while lifting Rei's upper back and head, resting his head on his chest and stroking his bangs while he looked around the room. And he nearly choked out a laugh at seeing the giant panda sitting on his bean bag chair.

His crimson eyes floated from picture to picture and from nick-knack to normal objects. So this is what Rei is really like?

After finishing his examination, he turned his gaze back to the boy pawing at his shirt, Rei's eyebrows furrowing as he dreamed.

Somehow he managed to kick the blanket out from under them and lay fully back down while covering himself and the raven haired teen up, all the while Rei still curled up against him.

And for hours they slept, late into the night.

It was around 11:30 at night when Rei's eyelids began to move, bleary amber eyes focusing on his 'pillow', a smile spreading across his lips as he met a pair of crimson eyes.

"How long have you been awake?" Rei asked as he pushed himself up, rubbing the sleep from his eyes.

Kai shrugged. "A while."

"Then why didn't you wake me up? You didn't just have to sit there and let me use you like a pillow."

"I don't mind. Besides, you needed the sleep."

"I know."

"So, enlighten me now; why couldn't you sleep while I was in Russia?"

Rei blushed, frowning as he stared at his bed sheets, his legs tucked beneath him.

"Is it that embarrassing?" Kai knew all too well what had happened seeing as he instantly fell asleep in his arms; he wasn't too worried about him to lose sleep, no one was ever that worried about him.

"Shut up!" Rei hissed softly before sighing.

Admitting that he needed Kai wasn't something he wanted to do. It was embarrassing.

"Can I brush your hair?"

Rei hesitantly looked up at the blunette, unsure exactly what Kai was trying to prod out of him. He nodded.

"You wanna watch TV while you're doing it?"

"No," was the simple response while he waited for Rei to position himself. "You're hair's plenty entertaining."

Once Rei was where he wanted to be, Kai unwrapped the hair tie and slowly unbraided the boy's hair, running his fingers through it, noting that it was still slightly damp from where either the boy had showered earlier that day and put it up while it was still wet or he had been playing in the rain. And Kai knew he wouldn't have played in the rain.

"Why do you grow your hair out?" the crimson eyed teen asked as he started gently running the brush through the raven locks.

Rei shrugged, playing with a stray lock of hair as he stared ahead into nothingness. "I've been told since I was little that I had really beautiful hair, and so I guess I just wanted to show it off. Why, do you not like my hair this long?"

For that stupid question, he received the back of the brush upside his head.

"What was that for?" he yelped as he rubbed the now sore spot, turning slightly to glare at Kai.

"What do you think it was for? If you ever even think of cutting your hair, I'll personally kill you."

Rei then laughed. "You like it that much?"

"No…I'm just practicing for when I get a girlfriend with really long hair," Kai replied sarcastically.

But those words stung Rei, even if he knew Kai was joking. And he couldn't help letting a tear or more slowly trail down his cheeks and off his chin, and he didn't understand why his feelings were so strong that it brought him to tears.

'He's just a really close friend!' he tried to reason with himself.

But the shuddering shoulders didn't go unnoticed by Kai, who sighed and sat the brush down before wrapping his arms around the other from behind.

"Why are you crying?"

"I'm not crying," he sniffed and he angrily rubbed the tears away with his shirt sleeve. Then more tears welled up in his eyes as Kai abruptly pulled him downward by his shoulders to lay Rei's head in his lap.

"Why are you crying?" he asked again, looking straight down into watery amber eyes.

"Because I'm scared!" he managed before covering both his eyes with his hands.

"Scared of what?"

Rei couldn't bring himself to say it, that he was afraid of losing Kai to someone else. But he wasn't in love!

"Rei."

"I can't!"

"Rei."

"No!"

Kai smiled as he removed the teen's hands from his eyes, holding them by the wrists.

"Are you afraid of losing me?"

Rei's eyes widened considerably, the tears momentarily stopping. 'How did he know what I was thinking?!'

"Because I refuse to give you to anyone."

At hearing this, Rei's heart pounded in his chest as he quickly sat up, drawing his arms tightly against himself, confusion upon his features. He didn't want to hear it.

And all Kai did was stare at him. Patiently waiting for something, anything.

Kalli couldn't hold it in anymore and she nearly squealed from her hiding spot in the closet, instantly drawing both pairs of eyes to the closed, slotted door across the room.

Knowing that she'd been discovered, she came out and tried to make a dash for the exit, but Rei caught her easily.

"What are you doing in here?"

"What does it look like?! I wanted to see it for myself!"

"See what?"

"How deep you two are connected."

"I told you earlier to stop with that!"

"Why are you denying what you feel?"

"I'm not!"

"Yes you are!"

And as the pair argued, all Kai could do was listen.

"Rei," he then suddenly cut in, drawing his attention away from Kalli long enough for her to escape. "Mika already told me."

"Told you what?" he asked, horrified. His mother had turned on him like that?

"That you can't sleep without me. That you don't understand your own feelings and are denying them."

Rei was torn. His mother really had told him.

"Do you know how many nights I've just laid there and smiled while running my fingers through your hair while you slept, hoping and praying that you would stay by my side forever? Do you know how much I want these rumors about us to be true? Do you understand that I drop my mask only for you, Rei? You've dealt with emotions your whole life, so you shouldn't be denying what you feel. I'm just learning to feel again, and I've come to face with the fact that I'm falling for you, Rei!" Kai said as he hung his head. If only he knew how to express himself better, to make Rei understand…

Rei didn't know what to do; he didn't know if he should be comforting Kai or running away. He didn't want to hear the things coming from his friend's mouth. He didn't want to believe them! He couldn't face himself yet, let alone face Kai's emotions as well.

The neko-jin suddenly jumped, his eyes terrified as lighting illuminated his room, leaving everything after in total darkness.

"Rei," he heard the quiet voice call to him. "If you want me by your side during the storm, I'm here. I'll always be here for you, and only you. And if you don't want to hear it, then tell me now. I can't deny my feelings any longer."

"I…don't…" he began to sob as he sank to his knees on the floor. "I don't know what I want anymore, Kai. I'm so confused!" he said as he hugged himself, closing his eyes tightly against the lighting outside.

"Do you want me by your side, Rei?"

"Yes," he breathed, shaking from trying to hold back tears.

His eyes snapped open as he felt Kai's warm arms wrap around him as the other teen joined him on the floor.

"What's there to be confused about?"

"Everything," he breathed softly.

And if Rei wanted to elaborate any further, he didn't get the chance.

Kai had, in one swift motion, gently grasped Rei's chin and pressed his lips to the neko-jin's.

Rei didn't know what was going on, didn't understand why it felt so natural for Kai's lips to be on his, for it to be so natural that he willingly returned the kiss and wrapped his arms around Kai's neck, pulling him closer as he whimpered against his mouth, wincing from the storm howling outside.

"Don't ever leave me, Kai!" he cried once they slowly broke apart a few wonderful moments later, his head falling to rest on Kai's shoulder as he held him for all he was worth. "Don't leave me…"

With that one kiss, everything made sense. He couldn't understand anything because he didn't want to understand anything. He wanted to turn everything inside out with questions instead of wondering what would happen if it were true.

With that one kiss, he knew why everything seemed so natural. He had already fallen, long ago.

* * *

One more chapter to go :D And you can rest assured it'll be pure fluffiness! And a little more angst…X3


End file.
